Taking a Stubborn Turkey with Mossy Oak World Champ Caller Matt Van Cise
John E. Phillips 04.01.13
Author’s note: Matt Van Cise of Brookville, Pennsylvania has been setting the turkey calling world on fire. On March 9, 2013, Van Cise won the Senior Open Division of the World Turkey Calling Championship held in Stuttgart, Arkansas. The week before, he won the Wild Turkey Bourbon Grand National Championships in the Senior Open Division. Van Cise has won five World Open Championships, four Grand National Championships, three U.S. Open Championships, a World Friction Calling Championship, the Grand National Friction Calling Championship, the North American Championship, and the Mid-America Open Championship since 2000. He uses MAD calls and is a member of the Mossy Oak Pro Staff.
For me, a stubborn turkey is a gobbler that’s most often with hens. In my section of the country, most of a turkey’s strut zones are out in fields where hens have a better chance of hearing and seeing the gobblers strut, so they can go to him. If I have an opportunity to watch a turkey in a field the day before I hunt, I’ll try to get in that field early the next day. Most people set up a blind on the edge of a field and then try to call the gobbler to them. But very rarely will you call that gobbler away from his hens. I set up my Primos Double Bull Blind with Mossy Oak camouflage in a place where I believe the gobbler wants to be, usually the last place I saw that gobbler before he left the field. I use a realistic strutting gobbler decoy like the Flambeau King Strut.
Some of those smart gobblers will fly down to the middle of the field, and call the hens out of the woods right to the middle of the field. When I have to deal with a gobbler like this, I set up my blind out in the middle of the field and put gobbler and hen decoys around it. I’ve never found that decoys prevent a gobbler from coming within gun range. Then I let the tom tell me how to call to him. If he’s gobbling, I’ll call as long as he’s answering. If he’s gobbling rarely, I just give him very soft clucks and purrs. I try to determine what type of calling that gobbler will respond to on that day.
I often have to hunt turkeys that have experienced hunting pressure. To take those gobblers, I get as close as I possibly can while the gobbler is still on the roost. I want to get to that bird before any other hunter has the opportunity. I harvest many of my Pennsylvania turkeys within five minutes of the turkey hitting the ground. Sometimes I set up my blind right under the gobbler’s roost tree. To get that close to a turkey, I watch him the night before I plan to hunt. Then I can see where he’s flying up to roost. I go to the roosting spot at least an hour before daylight. I set up my blind underneath the turkey, set out some decoys and wait for daylight. As long as the night is pitch dark, I can get away with getting in that close. The sounds of setting up the blind and the decoys don’t seem to spook the turkey, but I’m as quiet as I can be when I use this tactic.
If a turkey stays in the field until dark before flying up to roost, I probably won’t pinpoint the exact roost tree. I know a gobbler usually roosts within 50 yards of leaving the field, so I set up my blind about 25 yards from the edge of the field in the direction the gobbler has flown. My success rate on getting close to the gobbler, setting up a blind and putting out decoys is almost 100 percent. Four times last season a hunter who was with me took the gobbler as soon as the bird’s feet hit the ground, or I took the gobbler just as his toenails touched down. Those four birds flew into the decoys and were standing within 10 yards of our blind.
John, the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors.
Phillips has been a contributor to many national magazines, has been affiliated with 27 radio stations across Alabama serving as their outdoor editor and wrote for a weekly syndicated column, "Alabama Outdoors," for 38-Alabama newspapers for more than 13 years. Phillips was Outdoor Editor for the "Birmingham Post-Herald" for 24 years. Phillips was also the executive editor for "Great Days Outdoors" magazine for 3 years.
The author of almost 30 books on the outdoors, Phillips is a founding member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) and an active member of the Southeastern Outdoors Press Association (SEOPA). Phillips also is the owner of Night Hawk Publications, a marketing and publishing firm, and president of Creative Concepts, an outdoor consulting group.
Phillips conducts seminars across the nation at colleges in freelance writing, photography and outdoor education besides teaching courses in how to sell what you write to writers' groups. Phillips received his photography training as a still-lab photo specialist for six years in the Air Force. He was the chief photographer for Mannequins, Inc., a Birmingham modeling agency, for 11 years.
While serving as 2nd Vice President of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, Phillips was in charge of all press releases for the organization as well as serving as Chairman of Alabama's Big Buck Contest, which he founded more than 30 years ago. He also was president of the Alabama Sportsman's Association for three years.
Phillips is the recipient of a Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Alabama and the Department of Conservation for his work in the outdoor field. Phillips is vitally interested in the outdoors and travels the nation collecting personalities, stories and how-to information for his articles and features.
EDUCATION: B.S. degree from the University of West Alabama with a physical education major and a history minor.
EXPERIENCE: 10 years parttime and fulltime physical director for YMCAs and 34 years as a freelance writer, photographer, editor, book author, lecturer and daily-content provider for websites. Currently, Phillips is a field editor for Game and Fish Publications; serves on the editorial board of Grandview Media; is a regular contributor to 12 internet magazines and a daily content provider for 8 websites.
WRITING AWARDS: Runnerup - Best Outdoor Magazine Feature - 1981 - SEOPA; Certificate of Merit - Awarded by Alabama's Governor for writings on conservation; Most Outstanding Sports Writer in Southeast - 1983 & 1984; Best Outdoor Feature in Alabama, 1987 - Alabama Sportswriters' Association 3rd Place; Best Book of the Year - 1989 - SEOPA; 2007 - inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame as a Legendary Communicator; 2008 - received award naming him 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the Year from the Crossbow Manufacturers' Association; 2009 - GAMMA Honorable Mention for Consumer/Paid Best Essay for July/August 2008 in "Southern Sporting Journal."
